She handed her phone to Glenda, who squinted her eyes and studied the screen. “That’s an interesting piece. It looks like some sort of antique dagger, but with jewels. You should show it to Pete Taylor.”
“I was thinking the same thing.”
After finishing their food, the women paid their bills and exited the restaurant. “Would you like to check out the new riverfront project?” Glenda shifted her purse to her other arm. “It’s shaping up to be quite a showpiece.”
“Is this the one Lawson is ticked off about?” Carlita asked.
“Yes. It’s right around the corner and across the street.”
“Sure.” Carlita patted her stomach. “I could use some exercise after that delicious lunch. I need to bring Mercedes over here.”
The women made their way along the cobbled side street and down a steep and curving path. When they reached the bottom, they veered to the left.
Glenda abruptly stopped in front of a long section of curved marble colonnades. “This is it.”
The women’s shoes echoed on the gleaming marble tiles as they stepped inside and crossed to the center courtyard. “There’s going to be a wonderful mix of businesses in this open-air complex. One end features a small, intimate boutique hotel. The star attraction is the center courtyard, surrounded by unique area shops and artisans. The other end will house a unique mix of eclectic restaurants.”
The gentle patter of water splashing filled the courtyard as they circled a multi-tiered and tiled fountain and mosaic pool.
As they walked, Glenda pointed out the various shops. When they reached the other end, they stopped in front of a set of stately stained glass doors. Above the door hung a weathered gray and white oval sign, Savannah Riverfront Inn. Directly below the name and in small letters were the words, Inquire Within.
Glenda reached for the knob. The door was locked. “Bummer. I hoped we could peek inside. It’s gorgeous.”
Carlita followed her friend down the steps and onto the sidewalk. She shaded her eyes and admired the architecture. “This will be a nice addition to Savannah’s tourist district.”
“I agree.” Glenda changed the subject. “I haven’t seen the damage to the Mystic Dream. Would you mind circling the block so I can check it out?”
“Not at all.” The women fell into step as they walked along the cobblestone streets, passing by several shops and gourmet restaurants before stepping onto the walkway that ran adjacent to the river.
From a distance, it was hard to see the damage to the back of the riverboat. When they got close, the women slowed.
Several men were working on removing a section of charred railing.
“That’s terrible,” Glenda said. “I can’t believe someone would intentionally destroy an iconic Savannah landmark and I can’t believe Lawson is accusing my husband.”
They walked past the riverboat and started to turn around when something farther along the waterway caught Carlita’s attention. It was a ship’s towering main mast. “Check it out. I wonder if Pete’s ship came in.”
Glenda laughed. “Literally.”
“I’m serious. He told me it would be here any day.” Carlita squinted her eyes. “Sure enough, I think that’s Pete’s ship.”
The women waited for the ship to draw closer.
“It’s impressive,” Glenda admired the sleek wooden structure. Above the sideboards, was a wide strip of gleaming teak wood featuring fire breathing sea monsters and scowling pirates brandishing swords.
Several crewmembers were working on the upper open deck. “If Lawson was upset before, I can only imagine how he’ll react when he sees Pete’s pirate ship,” Glenda said.
The women continued walking to the other end, where the ferryboat that ran between the Waving Girl Landing and Hutchinson Island was docked, before turning around.
Up ahead, Carlita watched as a group of men marched down the sidewalk and stopped in front of the pirate ship. They hollered out to the workers on deck. Moments later, Pirate Pete and another man joined the men on the sidewalk.
“Uh-oh.” Carlita recognized one of them as Lawson Bates. They were too far away to hear what was being said, but judging from the expressions on Lawson and Pete’s face, it wasn’t a pleasant conversation.
Lawson jabbed his finger at the pirate ship and then pointed at his damaged riverboat.
One of the men stepped between Pirate Pete and Lawson and held up both hands.
“I hope Pete keeps his cool,” Glenda said.
Finally, Lawson and his men walked away. Lawson turned back once to say something. This time, Carlita was able to hear him loud and clear. “You’re not going to get away with this.”
Pirate Pete shook his head, but didn’t reply. Instead, the other man and he returned to the pirate ship and disappeared from sight.
“That went well,” Glenda commented. “I need to get back to the house. Mark should be calling me soon. I can’t wait to tell him about Lawson.”
“More like warn him,” Carlita said. “And the reporters.” She thanked her friend for inviting her to lunch and walked home.
Mercedes hadn’t returned from her shopping trip with Autumn, so Carlita settled in at the computer to research some appetizers for Cool Bones’ courtyard gathering.
She found several promising recipes, but was having a hard time deciding, knowing part of the decision would depend on whether she could purchase the fresh ingredients in town.
Carlita gave up and then wandered into Mercedes’ room. The joint venture agreement was sitting next to her laptop. She picked it up and carried it back to her desk.
The dollar amount was blank, and Carlita remembered Pete throwing out a figure of twenty-five thousand dollars.
Still unable to make heads or tails of the terms, she closed the file folder and wandered into
